Nine's digital TV bid gives southern buffs comfort

Mar 28, 2012

Late show ... Cameron Smith's Storm get a bad run on free TV. Photo: Getty Images

Having been buried for years in the free-to-air graveyard shift beneath American talk shows and home shopping networks, the NRL could finally gain the exposure necessary to satisfy southern fans and, perhaps, tempt others to embrace the code.

Nine has applied to the federal government for permission to show NRL games on its digital affiliate GEM. Notionally, that would mean Friday night and Sunday afternoon games currently consigned to post-midnight slots in Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania could be shown live.

The key to Nine's programming decision is the new-found ability to split the signals of their digital affiliates. That means they can show different programs on digital channels in different states.

This is crucial because Nine does not want to show NRL games live on GEM in NSW and Queensland, and risk dividing the audience for its Friday night double-header. Nine is also loath to show the traditional Sunday afternoon game live in its major NRL markets. The current delayed 4pm kick-off attracts good ratings and provides a solid lead-in to Sunday night programming.

For Nine, solving one problem could create another. The ability of viewers in the non-traditional NRL states to watch the game live might cause consternation from those in the heartland not afforded the same privilege. With the NRL media rights on the table, any change to current arrangements has taken on a heightened sensitivity.

Nine would not reveal how it planned to use the power to show NRL on GEM, but confirmed an application had been made and a decision was imminent. "The minister has indicated his support for increased coverage of sport on free-to-air television in the past," a Nine spokesperson said. "If and when we obtain approval, we will commence coverage."

The lack of NRL games on free-to-air television outside NSW and Queensland has long been considered, along with the absence of franchises in Perth and Adelaide, as a major reason why the N in NRL was spurious.

It was a lament echoed by Storm coach Craig Bellamy at the start of the season, when viewers in Melbourne were unable to watch the season-opener between Newcastle and St George Illawarra on free-to-air television before midnight. The Storm have constantly argued the lack of wider NRL coverage in southern states has made game development tougher.

Previously, the dismal ratings for NRL games outside NSW and Queensland – particularly those not featuring the Storm – provided a compelling commercial reason why Nine had virtually abandoned NRL coverage outside the heartland. However, NRL on GEM, as well as regular programming on the main channel, could allow Nine to offer southern viewers two alternatives to Seven's vastly popular Friday night AFL coverage.

Nine's application is a further demonstration of how the free-to-air networks are embracing the ability to put first-run sports on digital channels, provided by changes to the anti-siphoning legislation. Last summer, Nine used GEM to extend cricket coverage that had previously been abandoned in favour of the 6pm news. Similarly, Seven used a digital affiliate to extend its Australian Open tennis coverage.

Seven is now showing AFL matches live in Sydney on 7mate. As a result, tomorrow night's Carlton-Richmond match and the Friday night Hawthorn-Collingwood blockbuster will both be available on free-to-air, when previously they could only be seen live on Fox Sports. Industry experts estimate about 80 per cent of households have digital coverage and about 40per cent have Foxtel or Austar.

There was some consternation when Seven also chose to show the GWS-Swans season-opener on 7mate last Saturday night, leaving those without digital TV unable to watch the Giants' historic debut. Despite blanket coverage in Sydney, the match attracted an average audience of just 119,000 (82,000 on 7mate, 37,000 on Fox Sports).

However, having overcome their original reservations about taking eyeballs away from their main channels, free-to-air networks are now taking the view that by putting more live sport on digital, and cross-promoting it on the main channel, they will maximise combined audiences.